1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of automated systems for laying pipe. More specifically, the present invention discloses an automated vehicle system for laying pipe on the ground or feeding pipe into a joining machine.
2. Description of the Related Art
The problem with the current process of “stringing” (offloading or laying) the pipe on the ground, and “joining” (connecting the pipe together) in a pipeline is that it is slow, dangerous, costly and sometimes impossible due to weather or terrain. Stringing pipe usually requires one person to drive a truck and two people offloading the pipe from a trailer onto the ground. After the pipe has been offloaded onto the ground, one or more persons must go back and join each pipe together. Workers must push pipe off of a flatbed trailer. Many times work must stop due to adverse weather or difficult terrain. If weather gets too difficult to work in because the trailer cannot maneuver in mud or it becomes too difficult or dangerous for workers to offload pipe in the rain or snow, work must stop. Sometimes terrain gets too steep to where neither the trailer nor the workers can continue working safely and must stop. If the weather or terrain is agreeable and pipe can be offloaded from a trailer successfully it must be picked back up with another crew of workers and moved to join the pipe together or loaded into a machine to be joined together. This process would then involve roughly five workers.